PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke volleyball team battled through five sets, but was unable to overcome USC Aiken, as the Pacers claimed the 5-set Peach Belt Conference victory on Friday night inside of the English E. Jones Center.

The Lady Braves (11-16, 2-10 PBC) took a 2-1 lead after winning sets two and three, but the Pacers (14-7, 7-4) came away victorious, 25-15, 20-25, 15-25, 25-20 and 15-11. The victory marked the fourth-straight win for USC Aiken against the Black and Gold, while the Pacers improve to 44-13 all-time against UNCP.

"We made some crucial errors in the beginning, and then made some changes, but the changes that we made didn't seem to work either. We finally picked it up, however there were some calls we weren't able to bounce back from. So we need to just go out there and play our game," said UNCP head coach Angie Byrd. 

Marissa Baker was UNCP's kill leader, finishing with 16 kills for a .368 hitting percentage. The senior tallied a double-double on the night, collecting 16 digs as well. Fellow senior, Sarah Bower also turned in a double-double for the Lady Braves with 10 kills and 12 digs. Caroline Pridgen and Cecilia Brandon registered double-digit kills for the UNCP attack with 15 kills and 12 kills, respectfully. 

Defensively, Bower, Brandon and Pridgen combined for over half of UNCP's blocks, each tallying three block assists. Danielle Brown was also key for the Lady Braves' defense, posting a match-high 20 digs. Keeping the hitters active, Shekinah-Joy Toloumu also notched a match-best, distributing out 55 assists. 

The Pacers were led by Hannah Tierney and Ashley Lind, who totaled 10 kills apiece. Danielle Mercer recorded 14 digs, while Amanda Bologna churned out 30 assists. USC Aiken came out with a strong net presence to result in eight team blocks, including four solo blocks. 

UNCP played from behind in the first set, never leading the Pacers. Mercer closed out the opening set with four-consecutive points, giving Aiken the opening advantage. 

The second frame saw a back-and-forth battle in the beginning, with several lead changes a ties. Sabrina Gonzalez helped the Lady Braves take control following a 4-0 run. UNCP carried the lead through to the end, ending on a kill from Baker. The Black and Gold continued to pace the tempo, dominating the third stanza from the beginning. Gonzalez and Bower worked together to create 9-3 UNCP run, putting the Lady Braves up, 12-5, and for the second-straight set a kill from Baker earned UNCP set point. 

USC Aiken came back in the fourth frame, after Katie Toman helped the Pacers to pull ahead of the Black and Gold, 12-9. Morgan Westphal attempted a comeback for the Black and Gold, serving three-consecutive points,bringing UNCP within three at 23-20, but USC Aiken collected the final two points, forcing a fifth-set tiebreaker. 

Aly Johnson gave the Pacers the push they needed in the fifth set, helping USC Aiken jump out to a 5-3 advantage, to which they never let up. UNCP rallied, but its effort was halted as a kill from Tierney gave the Pacers match point.

The Lady Braves are back on the court tomorrow in a 1 p.m. PBC contest with Lander (14-8, 5-7) inside of the English E. Jones Center. 

To watch the full game click HERE.